Delivering Public Sector Core Reference Information as sustainable Open Data The UK Experience Geospatial World Forum Rotterdam 15th May 2013 Professor Robert Barr OBE Cabinet Office – Open Data User Group Manchester Geomatics and University of Liverpool

Where I’m going….. A Chronology Open Data White Paper An idea who’s time has come? What should be open? What do we have to gain? Funding Open Data ODUG Conclusions

A Chronology

Chronology 1979 Rayner review commissioned by incoming Conservative Government 1980’s Tradable Information Initiative 1999 Ordnance Survey becomes Trading Fund 2000 Crown Copyright review 2000 – 2010 “Address Wars” Local Government Ordnance Survey Royal Mail 2009 OS Open Data announced by Prime Minister 2012 Open Data White Paper 2012 Digital Strategy Board 2012 Public Data Group 2013 Shakespeare Review of PSI

Open Data Tradeable information Berlin Wall

HM Stationery Office, London, April 2000

A breakthrough

Raw data now!

Open Data White Paper

Unleashing the potential 1.Building a transparent society 2.Enhanced access 3.Building trust 4.Making smarter use of data 5.The future – a truly transparent society

An idea who’s time has come?

What should be open? Core reference data – Data which is used to link data sets together – Data which is used to identify individuals, places, organizations e.g. NI numbers, Company numbers, Addresses Data which is part of a statutory register Data which has to be collected to complete a Public Task, regardless of whether it is re-sold or re-used

What do we have to gain? Economic growth – Businesses can be built on the back of Open Data Efficiency gains – Data is more likely to be used if it is Open – Many interactions are simply meeting a request for data or information Reduced duplication – Collect once use many times (Inspire principle) Simplicity

Funding Open Data

Registration charges Existing public task expenditure Volunteered information Sponsors

Funding Open Data Avoiding the data use prevention costs: Complicated licensing and legal protection Marketing Distribution Invoicing Pricing

Open Successes

ODUG

Open Data User Group – Set up as a result of the Open Data White Paper – An independent group serviced by the Cabinet Office – Acts as a sub-committee of the Data Strategy Board, to which it reports through its chair Heather Savory – First recommendation to release a single definitive open National Address Dataset accepted “in principle”

Priorities Determined by requests through data.gov.uk The most requested data is national address data and addresses subsets, such as all schools – Campaigning on PAF, NLPG and AddressBase Requests for boundaries – Mostly already available HMLR – INSPIRE land parcels Public Rights of Way

Principles - 1 Core reference data must support an existing Public Task That task must be necessary and in the public interest

Principles - 2 Core reference data should be definitive Only one correct version should exist which can be verified at a canonical source. It should be collected once and used many times.

Principles - 3 Core reference data must be sustainably financed Normally from the budget allocated to the public task Alternatively from registration charges on those who cause the data to change

Principles - 4 Core reference data provision must be regulated through a lightweight regulatory or governance structure with clear responsibility and accountability Normally from the budget allocated to the public task Alternatively from registration charges on those who cause the data to change

AGI Mission 'The Mission of the AGI is to maximise the use of geographic information (GI) for the benefit of the citizen, good governance and commerce.'

Cost Recovery Mission To maximise the revenue from high value customers for geographic information (GI) in order to achieve earliest cost recovery and additional required trading surplus

Cost Recovery Mission-implications Initial high pricing Aggressive protection of IPR Cost reduction threatens cost recovery Low value markets exploited through “value subtracted” offerings Use maximisation cannot be guaranteed and is unlikely

What needs to be recognised Core Reference Geographies: 1.Are definitive 2.Should be collected and maintained once and used many times 3.Are Natural monopolies 4.Have variable value in different applications 5.Have highly elastic demand

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height) Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height) Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography  Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography  Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

The candidates Geodetic Framework Topographic Mapping (including height)  Geographic Names Addresses Streets Land and Property Ownership Hydrology / Hydrography  Statistical Boundaries Administrative Boundaries

STOP PRESS

Stop Press! Published by the UK Data Strategy Board BST 15 th May 2013

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 1 The government should produce and take forward a clear, predictable, accountable ‘National Data Strategy’ which encompasses PSI in its entirety.

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 2 A National Data Strategy for publishing PSI should include a twin-track policy for data- release, which recognises that the perfect should not be the enemy of the good: a simultaneous 'publish early even if imperfect’ imperative AND a commitment to a 'high quality core'.

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 3 There should be clear leadership for driving the implementation of the National Data Strategy throughout the public sector.

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 4 One would be hard-pressed to find any expert who, asked to create new structures for core reference data from scratch, would advocate the current Trading Fund model (for Companies House, Land Registry, the Met Office and Ordnance Survey) in today’s world of open data….

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 4 ….To promote and support a more beneficial economic model for Trading Fund data government should review how the Trading Funds are recognised and rewarded for their activities to stimulate innovation and growth in the wider markets they serve

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 5 We should have a clear pragmatic policy on privacy and confidentiality that increases protections for citizens while also increasing the availability of data to external users.

Shakespeare Review Recommends Recommendation 6 Building on existing activities around capability, there should be a focused programme of investment to build skill-sets in basic data science through our academic institutions, covering both genuinely unfettered 'basic research' and research of 'practical immediate value' to the national data strategy.

Conclusions

Open data appears to have the wind in its sails: European PSI re-use regulation Open by default policy Technology, cloud and broadband, supports it Government funding and encouraging lobbying groups ODUG and ODI Public expectation

Conclusions However: Vested interests must not be underestimated In the UK parts of Treasury and Shareholder Executive holding back momentum Some data holding agencies, particularly Royal Mail and Ordnance Survey resisting Many parts of government have other priorities

Conclusions Open data may become the norm …. but The case still needs to be made The benefits need to be demonstrated and monitored ODUG needs evidenced cases for data release Sustainable funding must be identified and sourced

That’s it Professor Robert Barr